Epic Battle Continues Between Pittsburgh Ballhawks
Pelescak Edges Jabs By One at Progressive Field, but Jabs Snags a Game HR Ball
by Alan Schuster, May 3, 2010Jabs and Pelescak combined for 21 balls Friday night at Progressive Field.In the ongoing quest to become Pittsburgh's Number One ballhawk, Erik Jabs and Nick Pelescak played out another close battle on Friday night at Progressive Field. Pelescak totaled more balls (11 to 10), but Jabs got the last laugh by snagging a Justin Morneau home run ball. Jabs and Pelescak ended batting practice with almost identical box scores. Jabs had 3 Hit balls, 3 Thrown balls, 2 Found balls, and 1 Retrieved ball. Pelescak had 3 Hit Balls, 4 Thrown Balls, and 3 Found Balls. Both ballhawks, along with Nick's brother Bryan and a Cleveland ballhawk, were involved in the chase for Justin Morneau's first-inning home run. The homer landed in the center field trees, and all four ballhawks sprinted to Heritage Park to try to retrieve it. Jabs and the Cleveland ballhawk found the ball at the same time. "The ball was impossible for anyone to get," Jabs wrote on his blog. "...it was lodged in the base of one of the hemlocks, between three thick branches." Quickly, Jabs pulled out his retractable yardstick and took a shot at it. Sure enough, he reeled it in and become the proud owner of Morneau's 168th home run ball. It was his first of the season and 5th of his career. Jabs and Pelescak are good friends who love hanging out and competing for balls. And right now, there's definitely no clear winner. Check out their side-by-side stats for 2010 (As of 5/3/10):

	Jabs	Pelescak
Average	6.78	5.77
Double-digit Games	3	3
Game Home Runs	1	1
Game High	12	13

Read more about Friday Night's game at Progressive Field on Erik Jabs' Blog and Nick Pelescak's Blog